The SR4 rules have left me with a couple of questions about the lowly datajack.

Firstly: The rulebook seems to state that you need to use a wired connection between your datajack and your commlink. Why? I'm sure the datajack would have the capability to accept a wire, but would it not also be a wireless device itself? Are they any better indications in the rule book?

Secondly: It seems to me that the heavily cybered could have a problem linking all those pieces of cyber to their comlink. Eyes, ears, cyberarms, wired reflexes, etc are all wireless enabled. Rather than turning off the wirless for these items, would it be reasonable to assume that the lowly datajack acts as a hub for the body? All cyber has a wired connection to the datajack, which acts as the bridge for all data traffic between your comlink and the body?

I like to hear what folks have to say about my insane rantings.

1. I have no pageref. but SR4 mentions that the DJ is wifi capable.

2. the cyberfan would not have to linke all the items to his comlink all the time, would they? They can just link Comlink w DJ, eyes, ears and smart by default and change it as needed to DJ, eyes, ears and wired reflexes to run a quick diagnose for example, than switching back to default.

you could always route through the different cyberware.

for example, your ears are connected to your eyes, which are connected to your wired reflexes, which are connected to your commlink.

Slightly off topic, but what about a DNI enabled Comlink in a cyberarm, would you even need a datajack then?

good question, I don´t know but my decision as despotic GM would be yes. If you want dni, you'd need a dj. Can always use the comlink with external controls (gloves & trodes) of cause.

You wouldn't need a datajack if you had an implanted Commlink, it has every damn gadget there is, and is already hooked up to you, I'm sure it would allow for some plugins and whatnot...

As far as the datajack being a hub for the body's cybernetics, that sounds perfectly accurate to me. There's no way in hell that I'd want to have the connection between my smartlink and my weapon be severed by a hacker because it's all wireless. I would want that connection hardwired, or at least internal to my body as with a skinlink (which used to be called an induction pad, as far as I know).

Would it be unwise to assume that part of the commlink or simrig package would be a datajack at no extra cost?

MK Ultra: I think trodes are actually a non-datajack way of attaining a direct neural interface with any device. They're just unwieldy.

non-wifi are possible (and surely prefered by my chars, too) with a skinlink, which replaces the need of an induction pad (You´d need a DJ though, I´d think).

IMO trodes do only replace the dj regarding imput from a sim-module. for controll, youd need a dj or possibly an implanted comlink (but I´d rule youd need a dj anyway in my game).

In previous systems, Datajacks were capable of routing 5 devices through themselves. To route more than that, you either got another datajack, or installed small hubs which functioned as internal routing.

The primary usage of datajacks in 2070 is probably going to be the secure transmission of data. Why take the risk of someone tapping into your wireless feed when you can simply get a direct line from source to device.

RE: Trodes being unwieldy--by 2070, since trodes no longer limit ASIST feeds or connection speeds, it's my opinion that they have probably also begun to be micronized. Imagine Commlink glasses, there's a visual feed that also tracks retinal movement to open and close menus, but the contacts along the main support arms that rest on your ears could be trode connections for DNI as well.

Cyberware is internally linked per default.

Yes, like keeping track of gear weights and memory capacities, they decided that making characters spend essence on hub implants for more complex internal wiring schemes was one of the less fun aspects of SR, and they dropped it.

Now, by default, you've got a mesh network, unless you have an oddball implant like a datalock, or deliberately change the topology of your network.

Even with all that, I still like the idea of datajack-as-hub.

So then it makes good sense to buy a Beta or Deltaware datajack. I think I read in the book that higher cyberwear grades have higher device ratings.

Get yourself a Betaware datajack, loaded with Firewall, Analyze and IC and you probably won't need to worry about a hacking shutting down your wired reflexes at an inconvenient time.

If somebody wants to hack your system they have to go through your Comlinks so I think you can just load that with defensive programs.

Only if the Commlink is the Node that establishes the connection.

It is perfectly possible to use Devices as Chockepoint-Firewalls.

Something I realized that everyone will have to worry about.
Rating 12 Technomancer sprites can hack through everything. Average Drain Value of one of these sprites? 4P. Possible dice pool for test, considering that this is a munchkin twink, 12. That's right, for the low low cost of no drain, you can get a R12 sprite to do all your hacking for you.

No.

The Fading for compiling a Rating 12 Sprite is twice the number of hits the Sprite gets. So the average is 8P. But you have an 11% chance of resisting 12P, a 5% chance of resisting a 14P, and so on. There's even a 1/(3^12) chance that you'll have to resist 24P.

So yeah, you can do it, but you're running real close to the point where you just frickin die no matter who you are. The fact that Sprites don't last long enough to be registered if they are higher than rating 8 is virtually meaningless.

-Frank

It's the same problem with Force 12 spirits. Yes, they're possible and yes, they're ridiculously tough.... but you're going to eventually kill yourself.

In both cases you're still soaking the Drain/Fading anywhere from 2 to (Force or Rating)x2 DV. It's got a nice bell curve to keep most of your hurty within expected tolerances, but you're still playing Russian roulette when you get too ballsy.

And aren't sprites' effective ratings capped by the rating of the node they're in? Or is that just agents?

it's all about palatel factories and trolls! hehe.

Platelt factories help with damage, not drain. The difference between damage in drain is significant. Things that help you resist damage do not help with drain.

Yeah, F12 can get dangerous, until you realize that there is a medic on hand to take care of it.

Even still, if I was actually out to twink a bit, I would likely go with F10 to be a bit more on the safe side. Heck, even F8 tends to be more than most can handle, especially for technos. Even if every hit they do comes up a success (in which case I would gratefully fail the roll to not let them come into being while I am unconcious, not many characters can make that many hits on a summoning test)
you are still likely to survive against F8.
A F8 spirit of man is still casting with a dice pool of 16, still casting F16 spells, and still majorly kicking alot of ass.

Remember, poor rolls can be negated with Edge rolling too.

There THA, see what heapened. You managed to derail a perfectly mundane cyberthreat into magical theory discussion #666!
Guess You´r happy with that, being anarcist and all

Just in case I haven´t mentiont yet. MAGICIANS ARE WAY TOO POWERFULL!!!!

noticed the magegoggles? and you can have pritty every gaget externel in contacts or sst! well except Attribute and Ini boosts but there are susstaining foci for this one.

Seriously, it gets on my nerves that some players won´t ever play mundane PCs. Time to send tham some nesty hacking, that´ll teach them!

Hey, yeah! I got sucked into it, too!
Quick, somebody say something about datajacks.
I, um....I like....datajacks..........yeah.

Don´t look at it like magicans are too powerful, look at it like hackers and sammies can also be magicans now. They finally take away classes for real, and you cry nerf on a non existent class.

Um yea, if you say so..

Soooo... I like Datajacks, too. Realy much, so. Even most of my mages got one!

Edit: Oh no, I did it again. Um think about Datajacks, datalocks, data-uh ...

I understand that a datajack is still the best way to get secure data. (although, with skin-link it's less of an issue) But with wireless being so all-pervasive, why is the datajack still a common bit of gear? Why isn't it an obscure, special-purpose bit of gear that marks aging wageslaves? They do state, in the book, that datajacks are common, right? I'm not just making this up? Why? What are they really good for, for the average user?

Right, but a DJ costs one tenth or so of an implanted Comlink in cash and only one third or so Essence. So while Comlink + Simmodule* may be preferable, not as many people have this option as the ones to get a DJ.

*You need this one or a DJ to use skillsofts.

Yeah, sorry about the derailing. There is another thread I created this morning. Further comments there.

As for datajacks, I love them. None of the hassle of upgrading your internal commlink, or dealing with hardware failure or replacing parts in your head.
If they decide they need to disable your matrix access they can just take away your commlink instead of putting weird crap on your head (whether paste or hood or jamming or whatever).

Really, there is a lot to be said for commlink in the pocket, skinlinked or wired to a datajack.

Realy? well it makes sense at least, allways wonderd if I´d need a DJ or external controlls to use an internal Comlink.

There's that and like almost all the hardware pre-crash (gee most of it in the world) is equiped to use a datajack.

Also there's no signal issues, etc. Stuff that's streamlined in the book, but in the real workings of SR universe it takes more resources to pull off.

Yes, probably many of the DJ-users in 2070 have one since before the crash and the wirreless revolution (Praise DEUS).

I think that the new datajack is the wireless hub for your internal gear, assuming you don't have a implant Commlink. That is to say, your datajack has a wireless antenae with like signal 1 or 2 (Based on rating of the cyber), allowing you to interface with other things wirelessly. Sure, you can plug it into something with a cable, but you can also go wireless and just subscribe your datajack to the device. It will transmit your DNI where it needs to without the cable, that is a built in function of the modern datajack. If any other cyber you have wants to get wireless access, it has to go through your commlink.

The main point of a datajack is to provide DNI access to your brain for anything you'd want to DNI. If you don't have a datajack, you need to use trodes, which looks dorky and can fall off. Nanotrodes look cool but are only good once and can be washed or rubbed off. the datajack wins because it's so darn convienient.

If you have an implanted commlink, I'd say you don't need a datajack to use the wireless function of your commlink to interface with the outside world. So the Iplank Commlink can function as a wireless datajack for getting DNI. Unless you also get a datajack, however, you cannot make a cable hookup to something.

Also, I've always assumed you can get skinlink for your datajack or implant commlink, if that tickles your fancy.

Skinlink itself may be an impmlant of its own in Augmention - most likely about 0,1 though,